<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>Daddy Daycare by Kellikat93</title>
<style type="text/css">

body { background-color: #ffffff; }
.CI {
text-align:center;
margin-top:0px;
margin-bottom:0px;
padding:0px;
}
.center   {text-align: center;}
.cover    {text-align: center;}
.full     {width: 100%; }
.quarter  {width: 25%; }
.smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
.u        {text-decoration: underline;}
.bold     {font-weight: bold;}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28086564">Daddy Daycare</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kellikat93/pseuds/Kellikat93'>Kellikat93</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Lukanette Tidbits [9]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Miraculous Ladybug</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Aged-Up Character(s), Babysitting, Domestic Fluff, F/M, Fang plushie is important, Fluff, Luka tries his best, Original Character(s), parenting</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-10 19:29:18</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>5,841</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28086564</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kellikat93/pseuds/Kellikat93</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Marinette has to leave town for a night leaving Luka with their three young children for the day and night. No problem right? If Marinette could do this, so could Luka, right?</p><p>Eloise, Tommy, and Bernadette prove to their father that being a stay home dad isn't as easy as it looks.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Lukanette Tidbits [9]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1584604</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>44</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Daddy Daycare</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>If Marinette wasn’t at work, she was at home caring for her children. If she had to travel, she took her children with her. If she couldn’t bring her kids and Luka was on tour, she would call up Manon, Chloe, or Adrien. But it was one of those extremely rare times where Marinette could not bring her children along, Manon was unavailable to baby sit, and neither were her parents and mother-in-law were available. It was times like this when she hated fashion shows that prohibited children.</p><p> </p><p>But a lucky star must have shined down on her. Because Super Husband Luka Couffaine was home and happily agreed to take care of the kids for a day and night. As much as Marinette trusted and adored her husband, she still worried constantly. Luka was rarely home alone with the kids. And when he was, it was for maybe a few hours at most and not for a whole twenty-four hours.</p><p> </p><p>“Now you’re <em>sure</em> you can handle this?” Marinette fretted as she stood by the front door handing Luka a list of chores.</p><p> </p><p>“Yes, honey, I can handle this.” Luka chuckled. He watched his wife retract her hand and skim through the list for the hundredth time. It was adorable seeing her act like a mother hen. She always did an amazing job taking care of their three children. Sure, sometimes it was a bit chaotic (especially with three children) but they managed to keep the peace. It was a wonder how Marinette balanced being a world renowned fashion designer and a mother at the same time.</p><p> </p><p>“Okay. Now remember! Bernadette is teething so I put her teething toy in the freezer to help numb the pain. And remember that Tommy will refuse to nap or go to bed unless he has his stuffed crocodile. Eloise is still recovering from her cold but don’t give her any medicine. If she’s coughing or her throat is bothering her, there are ice pops in the freezer. <em>No candy</em>. Last thing we need is her bouncing off the walls with a sore throat and a dribbly nose. Am I missing anything?” Marinette listed off the important bits while Luka bounced Bernadette in his arms.</p><p> </p><p>“Other than your bags, keys, and phone?” Luka chuckled. He stroked Marinette’s cheek gently before planting a kiss. “Honey, It’s just an overnight trip. I can handle this.”</p><p> </p><p>Marinette sighed and leaned into her husband’s touch.</p><p> </p><p>“I know. I just want to make sure…” Marinette fussed.</p><p> </p><p>“That our kids will be well taken care of and the house is still standing.” Luka smiled. Marinette returned the smile and gave her children one last hug and kiss on their heads before saying goodbye and closing the door behind her. The four Couffaines moved to the veranda and watched Marinette load her luggage into Adrien’s car before hugging her three best friends. She looked up and blew kisses to her family before shouting.</p><p> </p><p>“I’ll just be a couple cities over!! Emergency numbers are on the fridge!! Call me if you need anything!” Marinette was answered with a nod and had kisses blown to her.</p><p> </p><p>“Oh! Just get in the car already! We’re gonna be late!” Chloe grabbed the back of Marinette’s collar and yanked her into the car making Eloise, Tommy, and Bernadette giggle. They watched the car drive away before entering their home. Luka set Bernadette down in her bounce chair before going over the list Marinette wrote down.</p><p> </p><p>“Okay, we all had breakfast so now its…” Luka mumbled before flinching at his eldest daughter’s shrieking.</p><p> </p><p>“DADDDDYYYYYY!!!!” Eloise screeched. “Bernadette’s stinky!!!”</p><p> </p><p>Luka groaned and picked up his youngest. Sure enough her diaper was full and she was on the verge of crying from discomfort. Luka took her to the nursery followed by her eldest kids. Luka set his baby girl down on the changing table and opened up her diaper. And instantly he gagged. Bernadette only had formula and some pureed fruit, so why was her diaper so full?</p><p> </p><p>Luka gagged again and told his two older children to watch Bernadette while he grabbed a couple things. His children laughed hysterically when they saw their rock star father walk in wearing a pair of swim goggles, a bandana over his nose and mouth, and wearing two pairs of gloves.</p><p> </p><p>“Daddy, you look funny!” Tommy giggled while his older sister continued to giggle.</p><p> </p><p>Luka tried to touch the least amount of the diaper before tossing it in the bin as quickly and as carefully as possible. He quickly got to work wiping his baby clean and putting on a fresh clean diaper on her before massaging some baby oil on her thighs to prevent any chafing. He quickly dressed his daughter before carrying her to the living room and setting her on her play mat with her older brother and sister. Luka grabbed some coloring books and crayons for his children to keep them busy.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Looking at the list again, he groaned. In the elegant pink cursive, Marinette wrote a warning.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>Don’t let the kids have their coloring books. They still haven’t learned how to keep crayon wax on the paper.</em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>Luka turned around to take the coloring books and crayons back only for him to go pale. Within twenty seconds of reading, Eloise and Tommy already scribbled on the hardwood flooring and the pristine white walls. He quickly took away the crayons much to his children’s protests. He did the one thing he hated the most: punishing his children.</p><p> </p><p>Luka tried his best to gently lecture his children, but all they did was puff their cheeks and crossed their arms, scowling at their father for taking away their crayons.</p><p> </p><p>“Kids, you know you aren’t supposed to draw on anything but your coloring books.” Luka gently chastised.</p><p> </p><p>“The coloring book isn’t big enough!” Eloise pouted and Luka sighed tiredly.</p><p> </p><p>“I promise, when Mommy comes home tomorrow, we’ll go to the art store and get an extra big coloring book.” Luka promised.</p><p> </p><p>“Pinky swear!” Eloise and Tommy extended their pinkies like a threat. Luka smiled and hooked his pinkies around his children’s.</p><p> </p><p>“Pinky swear. But first, you two <em>do</em> have to go into time out.” Luka stood up and placed his hands on his hips. Both Eloise and Tommy groaned and whined. Luka first took Eloise in one corner and Tommy in the other. It took longer than necessary seeing as when one child was in a corner, the other was running away as if this was a game. Luka finally managed to get the kids in time out and set the timer on his phone for fifteen minutes. Hopefully that would be enough time to remove the wax from the walls and floor.</p><p> </p><p>Pulling out his phone, he looked up how to remove crayon wax off walls and floors. There were tons of options such as diluted vinegar, rubbing alcohol, commercial cleaners, etc. Luka scrunched his face at the results seeing as the fumes would be potentially dangerous and bothersome for his young children. He found one that was the least harmful and it was simply a magic scrubbing eraser. He was about to text his wife if they had any but halted knowing that she would ask what was stained.</p><p> </p><p>Instead, Luka looked through the cabinets to search for the elusive sponge and found it in their laundry room. He quickly soaked it in water and got to work scrubbing the colorful wax off the walls. It took some elbow grease but the wax was gone and the walls were clean. He moved onto the floor and by the time he was done, his shoulder was sore and the timer on his phone went off. He was suddenly tackled by two small bodies, screaming for his attention.</p><p> </p><p>He gathered his children in his arms and set them on the couch before going over the list again. He still had the laundry to do, vacuum the house, do the dishes, feed Bernadette, give the kids their nap, make lunch, water the plants, change the bedding, etc etc etc.</p><p> </p><p>Luka took a deep breath and looked to the ceiling.</p><p> </p><p>“How does Marinette do this?” Luka mumbled.</p><p> </p><p>“Mama is a superhero!” Tommy threw his hands up in the air. Luka couldn’t argue with that.</p><p> </p><p>“Daddy, I wanna watch tv!” Eloise demanded.</p><p> </p><p>“Okay, sweetheart.” Luka grabbed the remote and turned the tv onto some child friendly cartoons while he pulled on the baby sling and secured Bernadette into before getting started with chores. Going with the laundry first, he looked a bit stumped. There were several different colored baskets as well as some thicker blankets and he was unsure what to do with any of them. He smelled a couple garments and determined that these needed to be washed. But why so many baskets? He looked at the notes Marinette left and saw very specific instructions for the laundry.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>Wash the blankets first. They take the longest. Hot water, three detergent detergent pods, bedding cycle, tumble dry hot. Light colored delicates (pink basket) next: cold water, 1 detergent pod, gentle cycle, tumble dry low. Dark delicates (dark pink basket) are the same as light. Normal lights (white basket): warm water, 2 detergent pods and 2 color safe bleach pods, normal cycle, tumble dry low. Normal darks (black basket): Same as normal lights but use cold water and no bleach. </em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>Luka did just that. He shoved the blankets into the washer and threw in the detergent pods while preventing Bernadette from putting them in her mouth. Her ran the washer before going to the kitchen to finish the dishes. Easy enough. He had to stop periodically and give his daughter an ice pop for her sore throat.</p><p> </p><p>Unfortunately, Tommy saw this and begged for one too. Luka grabbed another ice pop for his only son who then complained he hated cherry and wanted grape. Luka told him that Eloise has the last grape one which led to a temper tantrum. Eloise offered her half eaten ice pop to her little brother but Luka told her he couldn’t have it because she was still a little sick. Eloise began to wail as well which then led to Bernadette crying too.</p><p> </p><p>The rock star tried his best to calm down his children but to little avail. He offered Tommy every other flavor but the toddler only had his heart set on a grape ice pop. Luka groaned and wondered how Marinette did this while he was at work and on tours. He had to think of something quick.</p><p> </p><p>He scoured through their cabinets while hushing his youngest daughter and nearly cried when he found an envelope of grape flavored drink mix. He quickly searched for a recipe for drink mix ice pops and read through the recipe.</p><p> </p><p>Luka hushed Tommy by promising he’ll make some but it would take time. This seemed to quell the toddler as his wailing calmed to sniffles and hiccups. He then calmed his eldest daughter by praising her for being a thoughtful big sister and wanting to share. But because she was still a little sick, she needed to keep her food and drinks to herself until she was better.</p><p> </p><p>Thankfully, Bernadette also calmed down now that the noise was gone. A sigh of relief escaped Luka’s lips and got to work making grape flavored ice pops with his kids. It was gonna take a couple hours for the ice pops to freeze up so he got to work making lunch instead.</p><p> </p><p>Marinette always did most of the cooking and Luka was a little too used to quick ready to go foods or takeout thanks to years of being on the road so his culinary repetoire was meager at best. Luka looked in the fridge and saw a plastic wrapped plate with a folded note on it.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>I made some croque monsieurs for lunch &lt;3 All you need to do is throw them on a foil lined baking sheet and cook them in the oven at 220 degrees C for six minutes. Cut the kids sandwiches in triangles otherwise they wont eat it. Don’t forget to give them some fruit and veggies. They’re in the tupperware below the plate. Don’t worry, they’re washed! Don’t forget Bernadette’s formula and her lunch is in the small container with the green lid.</em>
</p><p> </p><p>Even when she’s away, Marinette saved the day. And thankfully Luka knew how to work the oven. He preheated the oven before lining the baking sheet with foil and tossed the three sandwiches on the sheet. While the oven was heating up, he got to work prepping Bernadette’s lunch. He measured out the amount of formula before filling the bottle with the distilled water in the fridge. He shook the bottle to mix and placed it in the bottle warmer Chloe had gotten the couple years ago. He returned to the fridge and grabbed Bernadette’s lunch as well as the kids’ fruit and vegetables.</p><p> </p><p>Leave it to Marinette to make produce fun to intrigue the kids into eating them. Ladybug tomatoes, broccoli sheep, heart shaped melon pieces, and apple rabbits. Luka couldn’t help but smile at the effort his wife put into making their lunch. He placed the pan in the oven and set the timer for six minutes.</p><p> </p><p>While the sandwiches were cooking, he placed each child in their seats and tickled each one of them. Both timers for the oven and the bottle warmer went off and Luka carefully pulled the pan out of the oven, his own stomach rumbling at the sight and smell of the melty cheese. He laughed when his own kids screamed for cheese.</p><p> </p><p>Luka cut two of the sandwiches into triangles just the way they liked it and dished out the fruit and vegetables and placed them in front of his eldest kids. He went back to the counter and tested the temperature of the formula before deeming it warm enough for his youngest but not hot enough to scald her mouth.</p><p> </p><p>While his eldest kids ate eagerly, Luka was feeding Bernadette and made airplane noises to get her to eat. Which wasn’t that hard seeing as her own lunch was her favorite pureed sweet potatoes. But Bernadette was hungry and impatient so she did not appreciate her father’s silly antics. She hungrily grabbed the spoon and quickly gobbled up the sweet mash. She easily finished her lunch but her face wore half of it. Luka wiped her mouth clean before giving her the bottle and finished his own lunch.</p><p> </p><p>After lunch and a quick burping for Bernadette, it was back to chores while the kids preoccupied themselves with Paw Patrol. The washer chimed and Luka swapped out the laundry loads before plugging in the vacuum. It was difficult to vacuum the floor when two young children were running about and screaming thinking it was a game to throw things on the floor.</p><p> </p><p>Unfortunately, some of the things thrown got clogged in the vacuum and when Luka pried the vacuum open, it was just an explosion of dust and debris which left the Couffaine family coughing and sneezing. After opening the windows and vacuuming again, chore number two was done.</p><p> </p><p>Luka noticed the kids were nodding off and it was officially nap time. The kids were tuckered out in the living room so Luka grabbed a blanket from the linen closet and tucked them in on the couch. Tommy began to whimper and Luka checked to see what was wrong.</p><p> </p><p>“Fang.” Tommy whimpered. Marinette did mention Tommy refused to sleep without his stuffed crocodile. Luka rushed upstairs to grab the beloved plushie along with Eloise’s bumblebee plushie. The father gave his children their beloved stuffed animals and they drifted to sleep. For Luka, hopefully it will be uninterrupted.</p><p> </p><p>Seeing his children sleeping peacefully, Luka couldn’t help but appreciate his wife even more. She worked tirelessly caring and raising their children to be healthy and happy while balancing her career and her own health.</p><p> </p><p>The rocker couldn’t help but chastise himself. He loved his family with all his heart and will continue loving them forever and ever. And yet, he’s constantly on tour and in his recording studio well into the night while his wife, his beautiful wondrous wife, was at home with the kids taking care of them and the house all by herself. Luka’s gonna have a looong talk with his manager about freeing up more time to spend with his family and help ease the burden on his poor wife.</p><p> </p><p>While the kids slept, Luka got to work washing and drying the rest of the dishes and watering Marinette’s plants on the veranda and windowsills. The dryer timer went off, startling the teal haired father, and he prayed it didn’t wake up the kids. He let out the breath he didn’t realize he was holding when he saw his kids still fast asleep. He swapped the laundry loads again before taking the clean dry ones to each bedroom and changed the old bedding with the fresh clean ones.</p><p> </p><p>It was well into the afternoon when Luka heard the telltale signs of Bernadette waking up. He rushed to his baby girl who was now wide awake with tears in her eyes and wailing like a banshee. Of course this woke up the other two kids. Luka bounced his baby girl in his arms and asked what was wrong. He checked her diaper and saw it was still dry. He rushed to the kitchen to make her a bottle but she pulled away from the rubber nipple. Luka thought she might have just been fussy and wanted to be cuddled. He tried shushing, rocking, and singing, but nothing worked.</p><p> </p><p>Then he noticed her mouth. A few little white nubs were poking out from her gums and Marinette’s words donned on him.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>“Bernadette is teething…”</em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>Luka hurried to the kitchen and grabbed the light blue teething ring from the freezer and placed it in his baby’s mouth. Instantly the screaming and crying stopped as Bernadette settled down and gnawed on the cold hard plastic ring. Tommy tugged on Luka’s sweatpants and asked about the ice pops. Luka slapped his hand on his forehead, completely forgetting about the promised frozen treat. He carried his little boy to the freezer and popped the homemade grape flavored ice pops out of the molds and handed one to his son while carrying another one to give to his daughter. With his children distracted, Luka got to work folding the laundry and warming up another bottle for Bernadette.</p><p> </p><p>It was peaceful for the next few hours. No screaming. No crying. No chaos. Just simply relaxing and finishing folding the laundry.</p><p> </p><p>Until Bernadette had to have her diaper changed again. Luka carried his little six-month-old to her nursery and donned on the goggles and bandana from earlier that day and pulled on two more pairs of gloves like a surgeon ready for operation. This seemed to make the baby laugh as she giggled and kicked her legs about. Luka gagged and quickly held in a breath.</p><p> </p><p>“How in the world does sweet potatoes and milk do this to you?” Luka questioned as he wiped the baby’s bottom clean and fastened a fresh new diaper just like before. Once done, he cradled and rocked his daughter. Big mistake.</p><p> </p><p>It took Luka a couple seconds to notice something wet and sour smelling on his chest. He looked down and saw Bernadette had puked all over herself and his shirt. And for some reason, she looked awfully pleased about it. Luka sighed and wiped her mouth with a clean portion of his shirt before changing her formula stained dress into a bright green onesie with a black cat on it. He then pulled off his own shirt and tossed it in the laundry hamper. He was about to go upstairs to his and Marinette’s shared bedroom when the doorbell rang. Groaning, Luka had to forgone the shirt to answer the door.</p><p> </p><p>“U-Um…Delivery for M-Marinette Dupain-Cheng?” The mail carrier blushed when she saw the bare six pack that was Luka’s torso.</p><p> </p><p>“Yeah, she isn’t home right now but I can take it for her.” Luka smiled. The mail carrier asked for his signature, verifying the package was delivered and left with a flushed face. Luka was oblivious to her actions and shrugged his shoulders before carrying in the large heavy package.</p><p> </p><p>“Daddy, what’s that?” Eloise asked curiously.</p><p> </p><p>“Mommy’s package.” Luka answered and set the package on the kitchen counter.</p><p> </p><p>“Can we open it?” Tommy asked innocently. Luka shook his head.</p><p> </p><p>“No, you can’t. That’s mommy’s mail.” Luka smiled when his children huffed and crossed their arms. As if perfectly timed, Luka’s phone began to ring. It was Marinette.</p><p> </p><p>“Hello?” Luka answered.</p><p> </p><p>“Hi, honey. I just wanted to check in. How are you holding up?” Marinette asked on the other end.</p><p> </p><p>“So far so good. A couple bumps but nothing I couldn’t handle.” Luka reassured.</p><p> </p><p>“MOMMY!!!” Eloise and Tommy shrieked and made grabby hands for Luka’s phone.</p><p> </p><p>“Luka, I’m gonna face time you okay?” Marinette asked.</p><p> </p><p>“Please do!” Luka laughed. He pulled the phone from his ear and moved to the couch where his kids were huddled on top of him to see their mother. The screen changed to Marinette’s face and Luka accepted the call. Seeing Marinette’s smiling face lit up the children’s faces.</p><p> </p><p>“Mommy!!” Eloise shrieked.</p><p> </p><p>“Mama!!” Tommy clapped his hands.</p><p> </p><p>Marinette smiled and laughed before noticing Luka’s bare chest.</p><p> </p><p>“Honey, why are you shirtless?” Marinette asked. Luka said nothing. He handed the phone to Eloise while he held up Bernadette to the camera. Marinette couldn’t help but laugh knowing all too well what that meant.</p><p> </p><p>“Oh! You’re package came in just now and the kids want to open it.” Luka informed his wife.</p><p> </p><p>“It’s probably more fabric. Could you wash it for me, please?” Marinette asked.</p><p> </p><p>“Only if the kids can open the package. They were just asking me about it.” Luka smiled. Marinette agreed to the terms before cooing and making baby talk to her youngest daughter. Bernadette was both confused and intrigued by her miniature sized mother and made grabby hands at the phone. Marinette made gestures and faces which made Bernadette laugh and squeal while her older children told her how much they missed her. Marinette cooed and promised she would be home by tomorrow morning.</p><p> </p><p>“I gotta go back to work now. I love you all.” Marinette blew kisses and received kisses back before hanging up. Luka opened up the box and sure enough it was meters and meters of luxurious blue, pink, black, and ivory fabric. The kids oohed and awed at the sight of the shiny and soft fabric. They grabbed fistfuls of the fabric and helped their father take it to the laundry room with most of it dragging on the floor. Luka changed out the last of the laundry in the dryer and threw the fabric in the wash. Rather than risking it, Luka washed the fabrics on the gentlest setting. Last thing he wanted to do was ruin his wife’s new fabric.</p><p> </p><p>Luka took the loads of clean laundry to the living room where he began to fold even more shirts, pants, undies, and towels carefully and stacking them accordingly.</p><p> </p><p>“Daddy! Look!” Luka looked up and snorted at the sight of his eldest kids wearing Marinette’s bra on their heads. A bra cup for each head. It was difficult to hold in his laughter as he took a picture to send to his wife. He plucked the undergarment off their head and folded it carefully before carrying the stack of laundry to their rightful spots. It was only then Luka realize….he was still shirtless. He placed his and Marinette’s laundry in their rightful spots before grabbing a plain tshirt and pulled it over his head.</p><p> </p><p>Checking the list and the time, it was now time for dinner. Luka contemplated if they should go out, order in, or make dinner. He went back into the kitchen and checked the fridge. Sure enough, Super mom did it again. Luka unfolded the note on top of it and read the contents.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>I made ratatouille for dinner! Just preheat the oven to 200 degrees C for 45 minutes. Bernadette’s dinner is pureed bananas and blackberries.</em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>Luka followed Marinette’s instructions and the house now perfumed with the smell of roasted vegetables, garlic, and olive oil. Eloise and Tommy bounced impatiently as their father scooped the vegetable stew into several bowls. As if they were starved all their lives, Eloise and Tommy devoured the ratatouille ravenously, spilling bits of roasted vegetables here and there. Bernadette was just as messy. She was having more fun playing with her dinner than actually eating it.</p><p> </p><p>The rock star father sighed, knowing it was gonna be a long bath time for the children. When dinner was over, it was now time for war.</p><p> </p><p>…or bath time. Luka didn’t really see a difference.</p><p> </p><p>The moment Luka said the word bath, it was like a gunshot to start a race. Eloise and Tommy screamed and ran away from their father, dragging their saucy hands on the walls and on any surface they could get their hands on. Luka shouted in horror as he carefully cradled his youngest daughter while chasing his older ones. It was like a Benny Hill chase sequence as child after child outran and outsmarted the thirty-three year old rock star/former miraculous hero/father. If he caught one child, he lost the other. If he caught the other, the first one wiggled out of his grip and ran off again.</p><p> </p><p>Now because they were small, they could slip into places much smaller than the grown man which led to an exhausting game of hide and seek. Luka sent an SOS text to his wife and she suggested getting the bubble bath. Like a cat hearing the rattle of treats, Luka loudly pronounced he would have a bubble bath all to himself. A pair of gasps were heard and then the squealing of children and the pitter patter of tiny feet running to their father. With children in his arms and one strapped to his chest, he carried the kids to the bathroom and got them ready for a much needed bath.</p><p> </p><p>Finally, Luka managed to get his older kids in a shallow bubble bath while he gently washed Bernadette in her baby bath on the bathroom floor. While he was distracted with his youngest child, Luka didn’t notice Tommy pouring more of the bubble solution in the bath tub and Eloise agitating the water and increasing the foam.</p><p> </p><p>“Uh-ohhhhh.” That got Luka’s attention. He turned around and saw a mountain of bubbles in the bath tub towering over his hunched form. There were so many bubbles and so much foam, Eloise and Tommy could not be seen! Luka pushed and blew away the bubbles to search for his kids only to find them giggling and squealing like they were at Disneyland just having the time of their lives.</p><p> </p><p>“Okay, I think bath time is over.” Luka grunted as he pulled each child and toweled them off one by one. He wrapped Eloise in her bumble bee towel and Tommy in his turtle towel before gently drying off Bernadette. He led his children to their shared bedroom and dressed them in their pajamas. They whined and asked to stay up late knowing their mother wasn’t home. Luka didn’t relent.</p><p> </p><p>“Please Daddy! Just ten minutes!” Eloise pouted. Luka’s resolve was cracking at the sight of his daughter’s puppy eyes.</p><p> </p><p>“No sweetie, Mommy’s rules. After bath time is bed time.”</p><p> </p><p>“Five more minutes?” Luka still said no. “Three? Two? One?”</p><p> </p><p>“Blast off!” Luka held his daughter above her head and gently swayed her into her bed.</p><p> </p><p>“Ah! Daddy! Fang! Fang is all alone in the living room!” Tommy began to tear up. Luka rushed downstairs to collected the precious stuffed animals. He found Pollen, Eloise’s bumblebee, on the sofa but Fang was nowhere in sight.</p><p> </p><p>Luka searched high and low for the adored crocodile plush and found him under the tv stand. Luka pulled him out of from under the stand, but somehow Fang got snagged and an all knowing ripping sound rang out.</p><p> </p><p>“Oh shit…” Luka gaped at the now headless crocodile.</p><p> </p><p>“Fang??” Luka whipped around to see his son and daughter look absolutely devastated and flabbergasted. Eloise had her hands over her mouth in horror while Tommy looked like he just witnessed a murder. The only sound that was heard was the ticking of the clock. And then it happened.</p><p> </p><p>Tommy screamed and cried like he had just lost his entire family and Eloise began to shout angrily at their father for ripping her baby brother’s favorite toy. Luka tried and failed to calm his children. He promised his kids that Fang will be fixed as soon as Mommy was home. But that wasn’t soon enough.</p><p> </p><p>“I want Fang!! I want Fang now!” Tommy sobbed and wailed. Eloise held her brother close while glaring at her father like an angry kitten. Luka quickly grabbed his phone and dialed Marinette’s number as fast as possible. One dial tone, two dial tone, three…</p><p> </p><p>“Hello?” Luka sighed in relief, even with Tommy crying in the background.</p><p> </p><p>“Honey, we have…an emergency.” Luka admitted.</p><p> </p><p>“Who’s hurt???” Marinette worried.</p><p> </p><p>“No one” Luka answered but Eloise screamed that it was a lie. “I…accidentally ripped Fang and Tommy and Eloise saw.” Luka sighed in defeat.</p><p> </p><p>“Okay, go into my sewing room and I’ll face time you how to fix Fang.” Marinette instructed. Luka assured his kids that Fang will get all better because Mommy was gonna help. This seemed to calm them both down and they begrudgingly followed their father to their mother’s sewing room.</p><p> </p><p>Luka dialed Marinette’s number again and she guided him step by step how to sew the crocodile plushie back up. Marinette hissed through her teeth at the sight of the decapitated crocodile plush. Thankfully she’s seen this sort of thing before and was very patient compared to her two children who were still glaring daggers at their father. The stitches were very sloppy and Fang’s head was a little crooked. At least it would hold until Marinette was home. But with Marinette’s instructions and guidance, Fang was stitched back together and in the tight embrace of the middle Couffaine child.</p><p> </p><p>Luka smiled knowing Tommy was happy again but the smile dropped when he realized there were only <em>two</em> Couffaine children. Luka scooped his kids in his arms and rushed to their bedroom to check on Bernadette. His worries disappeared seeing that Bernadette was sound asleep with her teething ring still in her mouth.</p><p> </p><p>After the tiresome and chaotic day, Luka tucked his older children into their beds, sang a song or two, and kissed them goodnight. He left their bedroom door slightly ajar, letting the hallway light scare away any monsters and nightmares. Luka then carried the still sleeping baby to her nursery and tucked her in just like his two older ones. Carefully, Luka wiggled Bernadette’s teething ring out of his mouth and turned off the light on his way out. Again, leaving the door slightly ajar.</p><p> </p><p>He quietly descended down the stairs and into the kitchen to wash the teething ring and the dishes before putting the toy back in the freezer. Wiping down the table, Luka remembered the chase. He looked around and saw smudges, smears, and hand prints scattered around the living room and most likely the rest of the house.</p><p> </p><p>Exhausted, Luka grabbed some clean hand towels and the magic cleaning eraser from earlier and got to work cleaning tomato sauce and olive oil off the walls, coffee table, sofas, pillows, and doors. An hour later and he was finally done. The dryer chimed and Luka groaned at the thought of more chores. But he did promise his wife it would get all done. Luckily it was Marinette’s fabric that was the last load. Luka carefully rolled up the fabric just the way he’s seen Marinette do and placed them on her sewing desk before trudging upstairs. It was barely nine pm but it felt like it was past midnight.</p><p> </p><p>Not bothering to change into his sleepwear, Luka flopped onto his bed and closed his eyes, drifting to sleep.</p><p> </p><p>“...ka…Luka.” a clear sincere voice was calling his name.</p><p> </p><p>Groaning, Luka looked up and saw an angel smiling down on him. He propped himself on his elbows and looked at the clock on the bedside table. Half past midnight.</p><p> </p><p>“Honey? You’re home already?” Luka rubbed the sleep from his eyes.</p><p> </p><p>“None of us felt like going to the after party. And I missed my family.” Marinette smiled. She leaned down to kiss her husband’s forehead and run her fingers through his hair.</p><p> </p><p>“Thank you for taking care of the kids and house today.” Luka moaned at the feeling of Marinette’s nimble fingers through his dyed locks.</p><p> </p><p>“I don’t know how you do this every day.” Luka wondered and earning a laugh from his wife.</p><p> </p><p>“I had six years of practice.” Marinette joked.</p><p> </p><p>“Honey, I’m sorry for being gone on tours so much. If today is your everyday, then I’m a terrible father and husband.” Luka sighed in defeat. Then he yelped when a manicured finger flicked his forehead.</p><p> </p><p>“Don't you dare put yourself down, Mr. Couffaine. You work hard to give me and our three kids a stable home and a comfortable life. And when you are home, you shower us with so much love and attention it easily makes up for the long weeks without you. Everyday you show us how much you love us and you always do what you can no matter how small it is. Whether its taking out the trash or singing with our kids to even giving me reassuring words when I’m at a low point.” Luka sat up and Marinette held her husband’s face in her hands.</p><p> </p><p>“Even the small things you do for me is a huge weight off my shoulders. Being parents isn’t easy but we work well together and the proof of all that is how happy and healthy our children are.” She kissed her husband sweetly. Marinette’s words touched Luka and he held his wife close to himself, nuzzling his face in the crook of her shoulder.</p><p> </p><p>It’s true. Ever since their days as the Miraculous Heroes, they always worked well together. They had each other’s backs day in and day out. They were there for each other during the highest of highs and the lowest of lows. If watching over the kids and tending to the house eased more and more weight off Marinette’s shoulders, then Luka would gladly go through the chaos that was today everyday.</p><p> </p><p>“By the way. Why is the bathroom covered in so much bubble bath?” Marinette asked curiously.</p><p> </p><p>Luka’s eyes nearly bulged out of his head remembering that he forgot to clean that up.</p>
  </div></div>
</body>
</html>